The present invention relates generally to a thrust-out type container for a rod-like article such as a lipstick.
A container of this type is well known and an example thereof is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2000-189245. The container disclosed in this Publication extends in a vertical direction and comprises a core cylinder to which the rod-like article is attached, an outer cylinder formed with a groove, and an inner cylinder interposed between these core cylinder and outer cylinder wherein the core cylinder is provided with a pair of arms radially extending from outer peripheral surface of the core so as to be slidably engaged with the groove. The inner cylinder is formed with a pair of guide means through which the respective arms extend toward the groove. These guide means are formed so as to be opposed to each other in radial direction of the inner cylinder and one guide means is an opening extending in the vertical direction through the peripheral wall of the inner cylinder while the other guide means is a U-shaped notch extending downward from the upper edge of the inner cylinder.
In the case of the container disclosed in the Publication, a length by which the rod-like article can be thrust out, i.e., a distance by which the rod-like article can move upward within the container depends on a direct distance from a lower end to an upper end of the groove on the outer cylinder. Therefore, if it is intended to increase the length by which the rod-like article can be thrust out, a vertical dimension (i.e., height) of the container will be inevitably increased. From the viewpoint of the container's design, it may be sometimes required to minimize the vertical dimension of the container in consideration of its appearance. However, it is difficult for the container disclosed in the Publication to fulfill such requirement.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a thrust-out type container for a rod-like article improved so that a vertical dimension of the container can be minimized without reducing the amount of the rod-like article that can be thrust out.